There are only five participants remaining after The History Channel’s Alone season 12 episode five, with one tapping out and one passing out as the episode ends. The six still in the competition as episode five begins are all featured, although Baha’s only seen briefly battling the rain.
South Africa’s Great Karoo Desert is one of the most inhospitable settings for a season of Alone, and an unexpected rainstorm finds the survivalists battling the elements and struggling with their shelters. The following recap is filled with spoilers, so read on only after viewing the episode.
Nathan Olsen: Age 52, Buhl, Idaho
Day 9, 11:31am – It’s 67 degrees and Nathan’s happy his figure-four deadfall worked. He was hoping for a mouse but caught an elephant shrew. Nathan believes it’ll be good catfish bait. He’s not worried about his shelter yet because it doesn’t normally rain during this time of year.
After casting his shrew, Nathan takes a bath with his bar of soap. (It’s one of his 10 items.) A butterfly lands next to him as he dries off in the sun.
4:06pm – Nathan pulls in a catfish worth about 3,200 calories. He’s learned catfish won’t eat another catfish, so bait like the shrew is the way to go.
Day 12, afternoon – It’s cold and windy as Nathan finds warthog signs while digging wild tulips. The sky looks ominous, and Nathan is surprised that it might rain soon.
Kelsey Loper: Age 35, Winnett, Montana
Day 10, 10:29am – Kelsey makes a ponytail holder using material from her bow wrist guard and then heads out fishing. She’s got warthog jerky but knows she needs to fish to get some fat. She’s got about five or six days left of jerky, and even if she doesn’t eat after that, she can make it to day 30. Fishing is one of Kelsey’s strengths; she grew up on a lake and has fished in Costa Rica and Alaska.
Kelsey pulls in a smallmouth yellowfish, and The History Channel confirms it’s one of Africa’s strongest fighting fish.
2:52pm – It’s a small fish, so Kelsey cooks all of it, happy to have omega-3 fatty acids added to her diet.
3:38pm – Kelsey notes the clouds are moving by fast, but she doesn’t think it’s going to rain. Her camp is in a dry riverbed, but she’s not worried.
7:41pm – She eats her delicious fish with a utensil she carved out of bluebush. Her confidence is boosted, and she thinks her boyfriend wouldn’t be surprised she’s thriving.
Day 12, 9:36am – Kelsey starts work on a bench so she can watch ducks. She admits it’s hard mentally to just sit at camp all day. This is busy work to keep her mind off things, noting that Alone is 80% mental, 20% skill. The dark clouds are moving in, and she hopes it doesn’t rain.
Day 13, 1:21am – All of her stuff is soaking wet due to a heavy rainstorm sweeping through the area. The dry riverbed is now a real river, and she’s not sure what to do. She needs to hold out through the night, but the ground is saturated. Even with a fire, it will take forever to dry out. Her duck bench is going to be used to hang clothes and bedding out to dry.
8:22am – Kelsey admits she wasn’t worried about being in a dry riverbed until they just received three inches of rain. (THC says the area usually gets .4 inches per month.) The water rushed down to her since the land couldn’t absorb it. Fire’s not an option. She moved her shelter onto the bank during the storm, and now she gets to work setting up a quick, permanent shelter.
Day 14, 7:29am – Kelsey reports it rained all night and it’s still drizzling. It’s 41 degrees and she can’t believe this is supposed to be the dry season.
Douglas Meyer: Age 57, Kannapolis, NC
Day 11, 12:17pm – Douglas made a lure out of threads from his shemagh and cuts a groove around his pole, so his string won’t slip. Fishing makes him think of his dad, his fishing partner and role model. They discovered his dad has cancer just a month before Alone started. And if he wins, he can devote more time to his dad.
Douglas is tired and has only consumed wild mint tea and his pemmican rations. He’s down 14 pounds since day one. He’s unable to catch any fish and heads back to camp.
3:53pm – It’s turned cold, and you can see Douglas’ breath. A front’s moving in, but Douglas still doesn’t expect rain. He hopes that he can start catching food every day to help his mental and physical well-being. Douglas jokes that at 57 he’s “too old for this sh*t.”
Day 12, 4:38pm – Douglas is bundled up in his shelter and at first, he thinks it’s sprinkling, but it turns out to be ice.
Day 14, 9:18am – Everything’s wet and he hasn’t had a fire in 18 hours. He can’t find any dry tinder and doesn’t think the storm’s moving on yet. Douglas has been thinking about his father and is worried about what’s happening while he’s on Alone. He thinks maybe the storm is a sign that he should leave and head home.
Douglas is the fifth person to tap out. The last three days have been rough, and he’s looking forward to seeing his wife, dogs, family, and his dad. Leaving now means he’ll get to spend Father’s Day with his dad.
Africa is beautiful, but Douglas knows he needs to do the smart thing. He only found out about his dad’s illness a week before he arrived in Africa. Douglas is proud of what he did on Alone and will head home happy with the experience. He did the best he could and feels the experience was an expression of gratitude for his dad.
Sadly, The History Channel says Douglas’ father passed away before he made it home. The episode is dedicated to his memory.
Baha Mahmutov: Age 50, Wharncliff, Ontario, Canada
Day 12, 7:02pm – His tarp isn’t waterproof and he’s getting soaked on one side.
Katie Rydge: Age 45, Emerald Beach, AUS
Day 12, nighttime – She holds her shelter down as the rain pours in.
Day 13, 12:54pm – Everything’s wet and she explains that the lightning and thunder were right on top of her. She’s motivated to work on her shelter and thinks after this clears out, the temperature will go down. Katie’s going to weave saplings around the frame of her shelter and heads out to collect more sticks. Everything’s on pause now because she needs to work on her shelter. Tonight’s meal will be vegetarian again. She’s only eaten one fish and plants since day one.
Katie loves weaving and found a website showing an Aboriginal woman weaving pandanus leaves. She called her and got “adopted” into an amazing family of female weavers. Katie hopes every woman who weaves will appreciate her shelter.
Dug North: Age 53, Nashua, NH
Day 11, 8:37am – Dug points out that the gum from acacia trees is used as adhesive on the back of postage stamps. He heads out to fish and looks for bait under rocks. THC reminds us that poisonous snakes live under these rocks. The clouds are moving in which might cause the fish to be more active. His bed is currently on the ground because he’s not worried about rain right now. After he gets more calories, he’ll work on a better shelter. He spots a yellow scorpion (a rough thicktail) and explains it’s very poisonous and would cause him to tap out.
Dug grabs his shovel and finds a fat grub to use as bait. He tosses out his line and confirms he can see fish in the water. However, they’re not biting so he moves to a new location. A short while later, he catches a small catfish and thinks the tables have turned.
Day 12, 11:44pm – The rainstorm is getting more intense. He’s shocked and says, “Dry season, my a**!”
Day 14, 10:41am – Dug says his catfish dinner from the previous evening seems fine in his stomach. The air is damp, and the wind makes it feel cold. He describes it as a radical change from day one.
Dug knows he must think about a permanent shelter since the rain has been so persistent. Being wet at night is dangerous, so he needs a roof and a place to get warm. He sets up a ring of stones for a water purification fire. Dug is feeling good about his chances of staying for a long time since he’s got good plants and fish that are biting.
He’s decided on a dome for his shelter, which is set up in an area with large rocks for the foundation. It’s further from the water than his temporary shelter. He accidentally spills his water and then describes his daily plans as shelter building, boiling water, and then fishing in the afternoon. As he’s working, it starts to lightly rain again.
Alone season 12 episode five ends with Dug saying he’s tired and then collapsing while showing us around his new shelter area.
- Alone Season 11 Episode 12 Finale Recap: A Winner Emerges After 84 Days
- Alone Season 12 Episode 1 “The Land of Great Thirst” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 2 “Best Laid Plans” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 3 “Thirst Trap” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 4 “Finding a Foothold” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 6 “Purpose” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 7 “Echoes of Emptiness” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 8 “Weak Spot” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 9 “The Promised Land” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 9 “The Promised Land” Recap
- Alone Season 12 Episode 10 Finale Recap
This post was last modified on August 21, 2025 10:09 pm